This Friday INSIDER Daily Digest has news on the Army's Joint Light Tactical Vehicle program, artificial intelligence, special operations forces and more.
We start off with the awarding of a multibillion-dollar Army contract for the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle program:
Army awards $8B JLTV follow-on production contract to AM General
The Army has awarded a follow-on production contract to AM General for the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle worth more than $8 billion, the service announced on Thursday. The incumbent manufacturer of the JLTV, Oshkosh Defense, says it is pursuing a debriefing from the government in the very near future.
A senior official in the Pentagon's chief digital and artificial intelligence office talked this week about a study the office is conducting on responsible AI tools and producing toolkits that include data and model cards:
Pentagon's digital and AI outfit focusing on rolling out 'toolkits' in near term
The Defense Department's chief digital and artificial intelligence office is working to "operationalize" the guidance surrounding AI usage and deliver tools for the department to realize its AI efforts, according to a top CDAO official.
The House Armed Services intelligence and special operations subcommittee held a hearing this week on "The Role of Special Operations Forces in Great Power Competition":
House Armed Services panel hears testimony on special ops in 'great power competition'
Special operations forces should take on a more targeted and supportive role in an evolving era of great power competition, two analysts told House lawmakers on Wednesday.
Document: House hearing on SOF
Additionally, the House Armed Services cyber, information technologies and innovation subcommittee held a hearing on "The Future of War: Is the Pentagon Prepared to Deter and Defeat America’s Adversaries?":
Gallagher floats idea for 'thunderdome' approach to OTAs
Amidst concerns over the Defense Department's ability to scale commercial innovation, Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-WI), a new subcommittee chairman, said lawmakers should consider enacting policy to keep the military services accountable while using other transaction authority contracting vehicles.
Document: House hearing on the future of war
Keep an eye out in the coming months for a full-rate production decision for the HH-60W Jolly Green II Combat Rescue Helicopter:
HH-60W FRP decision imminent, Air Force says
A full-rate production decision for the HH-60W Jolly Green II Combat Rescue Helicopter is expected within the next two months, an Air Force spokeswoman confirmed to Inside Defense.
Senior HII executives presented their company's quarterly earnings this week:
HII forecasts stability in delivery schedules, maintains focus on hiring
Shipbuilder and defense technology company HII recorded a consistent fourth quarter performance, meeting all of its shipbuilding milestones and forecasting growing stability in its future delivery schedules, company officials said today during the company's quarterly earnings call.